Romans 14

“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (v17).  Paul saw that believers were “passing judgment” on each other over differences concerning food and holy days (v4). In the mixed Jewish/Gentile Roman church, these disputes could turn ugly.  Paul himself believed “nothing is unclean in itself” (v14), but he respected those who thought differently and believed they were brothers and sisters in the Lord.  He urged believers to privately follow their own consciences (v22), yet to put love above everything (v15-21).

Rather than destroy each other over non-essential differences, we are called to “pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” (v19).